THE STATE FARM. 353 



1854. The trustees desired that this trcansfer should take 

 place. Being appointed mainly with reference to their fitness to 

 take the guardianship of the large number of boys at the insti- 

 tution under their charge, and not from any peculiar knowledge 

 of farming possessed by them, they found that the proper 

 management of so large a farm required far more attention 

 than ought to be expected from any unpaid board of trus- 

 tees. 



The Board of Agriculture, on the other hand, desired 

 facilities for conducting experiments on a small scale, by which 

 they hoped to add something to the present stock of knowledge 

 of farming, and to meet, in some degree, the wants of the 

 farming community. It was not intended to turn the whole 

 place into an experimental farm, or a model farm, or anything 

 of the kind. The design was to manage the property in a 

 plain, practical, farmer-like manner, and to subject only a 

 small part of it to experiments of various kinds, which could 

 be conducted there without expense to the Commonwealth, 

 though some of them were of such a nature as to be beyond 

 the means of individual enterprise. Under the influence of 

 these considerations, both the trustees and the Board of Agri- 

 culture signed a petition to the legishiture of 1854, to transfer 

 the farm into the hands of the Board, and to appropriate the 

 sum of six thousand dollars for permanent improvements and 

 to meet the current expenses of the farm. This was the sum 

 which in the opinion of the trustees would be required to 

 make what permanent improvements were then greatly needed, 

 and of this sum over four thousand dollars were devoted to 

 such improvements. 



This occupation of the form, entered into after some deliber- 

 ation, was, perhaps, a mistake. It made it necessary to apply 

 to the legislature for appropriations outside of the legitimate 

 objects of the Board in its organization, and as is always the 

 case, subjected it to unjust criticism. The Board had to 

 contend with prejudice, misrepresentation and falsehood, 

 which seriously embarrassed the successful prosecution of a 

 truly noble, practicable and judicious public enterprise. 



The arrangement was one of true economy to the Com- 

 monwealth in every point of view, though it is always the 

 case that property under the control of a number of persons, 



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